The Holy Spirit - the Transformer

Transcription

1 The Holy Spirit - the Transformer Some people say you cannot change Some experts say you have to manage your pain that your character is set in stone by the time you are a teen that your bad habits are unbreakable That you have to live with your emotional baggage That you will never be free But you know what, it s not true. But as we ve learned the last few weeks, Jesus came as the baptizer in the Holy Spirit. And that changes everything. That makes all the difference. This morning, as we finish our series on the Holy Spirit, I want to preach about The Holy Spirit and His work of transformation in our lives. All of us need to be transformed. Not only because Romans 8:29 says our destiny is to be conformed to the image of Jesus, but there is a world out there who desperately needs Jesus and they are watching us. It should be the deep desire of our hearts to become more like Jesus. The Holy Spirit wants to transform us into the image of Christ. His wants you to live like Jesus, act like him, love like him, minister like Him-perform miracles like him, to have his character -the best news is we don t have to do it on our own. We have the Holy Spirit. And that s our main idea this morning: The Holy Spirit is the great transformer

2 The first Transformers movie tells the story of the AllSpark, a little box that is the source of all their power. It can restore and bring peace and give life. When that box is in its proper place, everything is fully powered. Like the transformers - when we plug into the power source, the Holy Spirit, everything is fully powered so we can be transformed. 2 Corinthians 3:17-18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord. 2 Corinthians 3:18 The amplified says, Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty (emancipation from bondage, freedom). And all of us, as with unveiled face, [because we] continued to behold [in the Word of God] as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are constantly being transfigured(transformed) into His very own image in ever increasing splendor and from one degree of glory to another; [for this comes] from the Lord [Who is] the Spirit.

3 I get so excited when I read these verses. Because it gives me hope. I still have a lot of growing to do but I have an advocate. I have a Helper. Let s find out what Paul is saying here. In verse 17, it says the Holy Spirit brings liberty and freedom from bondage. Verse 18 says, we are constantly being transformed into His image, in ever increasing splendor and from one degree to another by the Holy Spirit. This means it s a lifetime process; it s happening in degrees. There are no microwave transformation here. It s a process. But we have a part to play too. According to 2 Corinthians 3:18, We need to come to God with an unveiled face. this speaks of a separation. We need to come to God honestly and lose the make-believe, all play-acting, And get real with God. Verse 18 says we need to behold as in a mirror. It s like this, There s a big mirror - it s huge and God wants us to look in it. When we look in a mirror what do we see? Do we see Christ? His love, his compassion, his patience, his character? If we don t we need to ask the Holy Spirit to change us. The verse goes on to say, Because we continue to behold the word of God. When you behold the word of God, you are fixed upon it like super glue. It s has your full attention. You are reading it with great care. The greatest moments of transformation happened in my life when I heard the Word preached, my mind was renewed, and I started living what I believed. The greatest moment of transformation in my life happened when I was meditating (beholding the Word) and the Holy Spirit united with my faith and revealed a truth to me. The greatest transformation has happened in my life when I allowed God to deliver me from my past. I decided to open up my life to another Christian and receive prayer. But you have to keep beholding. You have to keep looking intently. If you keep beholding - the key word is keep on. Don t stop. Don t give up. Don t get distracted. The Holy Spirit is ready to bring transformation but you have to pick up the word but you need to put down the remote. The Holy Spirit is ready to transform you, but you need to pick up the Word and put down the mouse.

4 If you re stuck, if you re fighting the same old habits and sins and emotional baggage, it s time for the Holy Spirit to take over - He has a plan. We just need to walk in that plan. Let me give you three ways we can experience transformation: 1. Transformation happens as we have our minds renewed - New International Version Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will. The NLT says let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. We have to change the way we think. We have to allow the Holy Spirit to wash our minds from negative thoughts and ungodly beliefs. He s a master at that. Renewing the mind is like refinishing furniture. It is a two-stage process. It involves taking off the old and replacing it with the new. The old is the lies you have believed or were spoken over you by others; it is the attitudes and ideas that have become a part of your thinking but do not reflect reality. The new is the truth. To renew your mind you have to allow the Holy Spirit to bring to the surface the lies you have accepted and replace them with truth. To the degree that you do this, your behavior will be transformed. The old is the lies; the new is the truth. I want to encourage you to write down every negative thought, every lie you ve believed, exchange that lie with the truth. I m tired of the devil lying to people; it is sapping their strength and effectiveness and fruitfulness. Jesus didn t baptize us in the Holy Spirit so that we could go around being defeated. He gave us his Holy Spirit so we could be a witness, so we could lay hands on the sick, go we could preach the gospel, so we could go into all the world, see people healed and restored. So that others could look at us and say I want to know this Jesus because I see Him in your life. But we have to renew our minds. 2. Transformation happens when we study the Word. We need to study the word if we are going to grow and be transformed. Not just reading the word but really study it. If you want to be transformed, you have to study the Word. We have a lot of Christians who have character issues and little Bible reading. The Bible was not written to satisfy your curiosity, but to transform your life. You can read the Bible all day but have you studied it until you have received the truth in your

5 heart. You see, truth received can revolutionize a person s life...and this is where the Holy Spirit comes in. This is where it gets exciting. You see, the Holy Spirit is the revealer of truth. 1 Corinthians 2:10 says, The Holy spirit searches into all things, even the deep things of God. In John 16:12-13 Jesus said, I still have many things to say to you, but you are not able to bear them... or grasp them now. But when He, the Spirit of Truth (the Truth giving Spirit) comes, He will guide you into all the truth (the whole full truth). The term Paul uses here for truth is not logos, which refers to general statements or messages, but is rhema. A truth God speaks personally to you. Maybe you have had some experience with this. Sometimes, when you are reading a passage of Scripture, the words seem to suddenly come alive, take on flesh and bones, and leap off the page at you. Sometimes the scripture develops a voice that echoes in your ears until you cannot get away from it. This is the Holy Spirit at work - He is the revealer of truth. He causes the Bible to come alive, he reveals the deep things of God to you. He leads us into truth. Because when you will know the truth, the truth will set you free. This is his plan - Ever struggled with finding time to study the word? Ever been distracted? There is a warfare on the Word - the devil doesn t want you to study it - because it s the Holy Spirit s AllSpark - it s what he uses to transform you. Paul Barker Seminar 3. Transformation happens as we are healed in our soul from past hurts and delivered. God is a God of deliverance. Is 61 says, the Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives. The Holy Spirit sets us free. You can renew your mind, receive truth, but if you have a wound in your heart, a bitterness in your soul, a dramatic experience that torments you, it blocks the Holy spirit s deep work. We need to be healed in our soul. I knew I needed other Christians to receive prayer. Get to a victory weekend. Get some counseling. The Holy Spirit is involved in each one of these - he renews our mind, he reveals truth, he delivers us - all to transform us so we can be like Jesus.

6 At every level, the Holy Spirit is personally involved in the process of transformation. Jesus came as the baptizer in the Holy Spirit! He came to give us power to be a witness, the power to preach the gospel, make disciples. God wants to baptize you in His Spirit. The Holy Spirit is essential to your walk, for your freedom, for your destiny. There is no limit to what God can do in and through you when you are empowered by the Holy Spirit. Confess: I can change by the power of the Holy Spirit I don t have to manage my pain; I can be healed from all pain I don t have to live with regret; I am forgiven My character is not set in stone -the Holy Spirit is pruning and chipping away at it and making me more like Christ. I can break bad habits by the power of the Holy Spirit I don t have to live with my emotional baggage I can be free! I can preach the gospel I can perform miracles I can reach the world for Christ I can love others, make a difference in the world I can make disciples